The present invention relates to 1,3,4-thiadiazole reaction products useful as accelerators and/or curing agents for halogenated polymers in rubber vulcanization processes, and to halogenated polymer compositions containing the thiadiazole derivatives, as well as a method of preparing the same.
Vulcanizable rubber compositions present certain inherent problems in terms of handling and storage. For example, prior to the curing, the uncured rubber may often degrade during storage due to hydrolytic instability of the additives contained therein. As a result the cure reproducibility from batch to batch in the vulcanization process can often vary. However, batch-to-batch cure reproducibility is an important parameter of quality control.
It is known that halogen-containing polymers may be compounded with curing agents, accelerators and other compounds in order to prepare vulcanizable rubber compositions which are useful in a variety of applications. A description of curing agents and accelerators, as well as other components of natural and synthetic rubbers can be found in Kirk-Othmer's Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology, John Wiley & Sons, 4th Edition, at pages 460–481.
Despite the availability of curing agents and/or accelerators for halogenated polymers, there is a continuing need for curing agents and/or accelerators that allow for good bin storage characteristics and improved batch-to-batch cure reproducibility.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to compounds useful as curing agents and/or accelerators for rubber vulcanization processes which provide good bin storage properties for uncured rubber and improved consistency in cure reproducibility.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide curable rubber compositions which exhibit good bin storage properties and improved consistency in cure reproducibility and methods of preparing the cured rubber compositions.